1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an interior illuminator for an automobile which is provided on the ceiling of the automobile and illuminates the interior of the automobile.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional known illuminators for illuminating the interior of an automobile include one using a plurality of lamps as a light source (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-177482) and one using a fluorescent lamp as a light source (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-129345).
As for the automobile, the recent trend is toward a wider interior space and a higher riding capacity, and it is desired that the illumination produces a decorative effect for occupants on the backseat. However, conventional illuminators are designed primarily for interior illumination and emit relatively intense light, and therefore, there is a problem that an atmosphere desired by an occupant cannot be easily produced inside the automobile.
Thus, to provide a decorative effect in addition to simply illuminating the interior of the automobile, an additional light emitting device other than the illuminator has to be attached anywhere in the automobile. In this case, however, there are problems that the space for accommodating the additional light emitting device has to be provided, the wiring becomes complicated, and the attaching operation become burdensome.
To solve the problems described above, an object of the present invention is to provide an interior illuminator for an automobile that can produce a decorative effect by illumination in addition to illuminating the interior of the automobile and has a simple structure and a small size.